


'And We Are Merely Players': A Compendium

by jld_az



Category: Chronicles of Amber - Roger Zelazny
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-14 06:47:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28791231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jld_az/pseuds/jld_az
Summary: I've created / curated a lot of lore for my Amberverse over the years.Srsly, YDEK. 🙄In the course of writingAnd We Are Merely Players, it's occurred to me that noteverythingneeds to come out as part of the narrative. But some people dig on details, and I'm happy to oblige when I can.So .. this is my Silmarillion, I guess. /lolshrugPeriodic updates at best. NGL.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 5





	1. AWAMP: A (loosely) Chronological Reading Order

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the completionists out there, and anyone else who might want to take in the whole AWAMP'verse in chronological order (regardless of whether a story is required reading for the overarching plot at all), I present you this.
> 
> Since there's a few points of overlap between the two side threads - especially throughout [JAFS](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1696642) and [HRGF](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23980609) \- I tried to place chapters in an order where one might foreshadow the other instead of spoil it. Y'know, for TEH DRAMA. \0/

**~ PRELUDE ~**

[Right on Target (So Direct)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24852127)

**~ BOOK ONE ~**

[Just Another Future Song [ch1] - Strung Out on Lasers and Slash-back Blazers](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23570866/chapters/56549815)  
[Just Another Future Song [ch2] - Crack Baby Crack, Show Me You're Real](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23570866/chapters/56550976)  
[A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall [ch1]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23980609/chapters/57681616) (+[Vignette: When Leo Met Margie](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27756145))  
[Just Another Future Song [ch3] - A Godawful Small Affair](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23570866/chapters/56551591)  
[A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall [ch2]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23980609/chapters/58890355)  
[A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall [ch3]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23980609/chapters/61626289)  
[Just Another Future Song [ch4] - Busting Up My Brains for the Words](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23570866/chapters/56552278)  
[Just Another Future Song [ch5] - We Spoke of Was and When](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23570866/chapters/56553232) (+[epilogue](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23570866/chapters/56553307))  
[Waiting for the Gift](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23572819)  
[Of Sweet Talking, Night Walking Games](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23574751)  
[A Crash Course for the Ravers](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23586898)  
[As Though Nothing Could Fall](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23587879)  
[Time Takes a Cigarette [ch1] - With Saccharine and Trust](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26594260/chapters/64840090)  
[A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall [ch4]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23980609/chapters/63822952)  
[Time Takes a Cigarette [ch2] - Asleep to Our Latent Fuss](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26594260/chapters/67045663)  
[A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall [ch5]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23980609/chapters/70247391)  
[Time Takes a Cigarette [ch3] - Flashing Teeth of Brass](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26594260/chapters/67421731) (+[Refrains of a Romance [ch1]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29857632/chapters/73468911))  
[A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall [ch6]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23980609/chapters/72123912) (+[epilogue](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23980609/chapters/72124206))  
[Liberty She Pirouette](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23731828)  
[Don't Think Twice (It's All Right)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24853681)  
[Ten-Thousand Miles in the Mouth of a Graveyard](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28708602)  
[The Distance to Here](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23972542)

**~ INTERLUDE ~**

[A Simple Twist of Fate](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24853738)

**~ BOOK TWO ~**

\-- WiP -- Strange, But Not A Stranger


	2. AWAMP: A (mostly) Canonical Soundtrack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I reference a LOT of music in my writing. Like, A LOT.
> 
> This is a compilation of songs that were  
> \- culled for titles,  
> \- directly named within the storyline,  
> \- obliquely referenced as part of a scene,  
> \- from an album / artist mentioned as 'listened to', or  
> \- *the closest thing I could commandeer to convey a tone.
> 
> [And then I put them in chronological order based on use within the narrative](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiANTbXq-_MGbBRAfUDgWrNT2wu9RT9vD).
> 
> Because that's how I roll.
> 
> LOLz/cry

[You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Claf8E18eLs) \- Bob Dylan, _Blood on the Tracks (1975)_

> _But this time 'round, it's more correct_
> 
> _Right on target, so direct_
> 
> _You're gonna make me lonesome when you go_

[Limelight](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiRuj2_czzw) \- Rush, _Moving Pictures (1981)_

> _All the world's indeed a stage_
> 
> _And we are merely players_
> 
> _Performers and portrayers_

[Diamond Dogs](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTIsnYPG4lU) \- David Bowie, _Diamond Dogs (1974)_

> _Just another future song_
> 
> _Lonely little kitsch_

[The Jean Genie](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMYg_Ra4cr8) \- David Bowie, _Aladdin Sane (1973)_

> _A small Jean Genie snuck off to the city_
> 
> _Strung out on lasers and slash back-blazers_

[My Generation](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2R5lcZFWEwg) \- Patti Smith, _Horses (1975)_

> “So,” she said as she exhaled to the side and handed it back, “who do you belong to?”
> 
> “Nobody,” he replied.
> 
> The space between them hummed electric. The speakers crackled as Patti Smith’s cover of _My Generation_ hammered fast and wild through the din. She tucked her green hair behind her ears with a grin that broadcast her intentions clearly.
> 
> “That’s convenient.”

[Breakdown](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqxns-JTTqA) \- Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, _Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (1976)_

> He hummed an acknowledgment as he lit up, but didn’t seem inclined to ask a follow-up question. She used the flame off his lighter when he held it out to her, then returned the humidor to its hiding spot and started the engine.
> 
> The radio blasted _Breakdown_ at them. Martin sprawled into the corner of the passenger seat and the door as she shifted into drive.

[Cracked Actor](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkEvAvIGK-w) \- David Bowie, _Aladdin Sane_

> _Crack, baby, crack_
> 
> _Show me you're real_

[Changes](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPPSu0vaNWA) \- David Bowie, _Hunky Dory (1971)_

> There was a break in the music as the album ended and the turntable reset itself, starting over: _Still don't know what I was waiting for, and my time was running wild, a million dead-end streets and-_
> 
> “How about you?” Aunna lifted one heel to rest on the countertop, the sheet draping between her legs as she leaned back against the cabinets. “Have all your flings left peacefully in the morning?”
> 
> “Every one,” he boasted. “But then, you could say I have A Type.”
> 
> She blinked slowly at him. He took a drag off his cigarette and tilted his head at her. After a brief pause she conceded with a smirk.

[Life On Mars?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZKcl4-tcuo) \- David Bowie, _Hunky Dory_

> _It's a God-awful small affair_
> 
> _To the girl with the mousy hair_

[A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5al0HmR4to) \- Bob Dylan, _The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan (1963)_

> _Oh, where have you been, my blue-eyed son_
> 
> _And where have you been, my darling young one_

[Health to the Company](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ENmmkar0QQ) (Irish Traditional) - The Longest Johns, _Cures What Ails Ya (2020)_

> When he reached for a non-existent sleeve pocket for an equally non-existent pen, she produced one from the recesses of her apron and set it down discreetly; proceeded to collect the remaining empty glasses. As he scrawled where indicated and tallied in a generous gratuity, he heard her singing under her breath with the band, who were winding up their impromptu concert with a traditional closing-time ballad. He tilted her a smile, and stood.

[Moonage Daydream](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFDj3shXvco) \- David Bowie, _The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust (1972)_

> _And I'm bustin' up my brains for the words_
> 
> _Keep your 'lectric eye on me, babe_

[The Man Who Sold the World](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g33-W9t2q2Q) \- David Bowie, _The Man Who Sold the World (1970)_

> _We passed upon the stair_
> 
> _We spoke of was and when_

[Julie’s Been Working for the Drug Squad](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPMsaxqiL5Q) \- The Clash, _Give ‘Em Enough Rope (1978)_

> He was listening to _Give 'Em Enough Rope_. Further confirmation, if she’d needed any, that a nerve had been touched at some point. She sighed, and finished off her sandwich as she walked down to the barn.
> 
> … … ...
> 
> Martin lowered the volume on his stereo, and listened.
> 
> In the gap between the fourth and fifth song he’d heard a strange noise, and it hadn’t come from the Hi-Fi: a sort of deep-throated braying sound, like someone had strangled a really angry hippopotamus.

[Sound and Vision](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3L58KyHC_M) \- David Bowie, _Low (1977)_

> _And I will sing_
> 
> _Waiting for the gift of sound and vision_

[Refugee](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFnOfpIJL0M) \- Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, _Damn the Torpedoes (1979)_

> Aunna laughed, handing up another tile. “To be fair, last time I tuned you out after the twentieth.”
> 
> Martin accepted with a laugh of his own. “See, now that I know you mean ‘tuned you out’ _literally,_ the fact that you didn’t hear me calling you for dinner after makes _so_ much more sense.”
> 
> “I had to,” she intoned with affected gravitas, holding up a scarcely parted thumb and forefinger. “You were _thisclose_ to ruining ‘Refugee’ for me, and I wasn’t about to let that happen.”

[Queen Bitch](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5P63qGTm_g) \- David Bowie, _Hunky Dory_

> _She's an old-time ambassador_
> 
> _Of sweet talking, night walking games_

*[Arabella](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj8r3qmOoZ8) \- Arctic Monkeys, _AM (2013)_

> She was watching him play to a crowd the size of which she’d never experienced before, and he was _radiant_ in it. She was surrounded by strangers, yet her world winnowed down to just him and his fingers and his throat and the words coming out and-
> 
> _she knew those words could hear them in low breaths into her ear as he pressed in folded over thrust up oh god the memory of his teeth in her shoulder_
> 
> -her ribs envied the Nightingale, the way his digits glossed over the frets, the firm pressure he applied between; knew this was where those calluses she felt against her came from.

[Drive-in Saturday](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXXeRQjbH4g) \- David Bowie, _Aladdin Sane_

> _It's a crash course for the ravers_
> 
> _It's a drive-in Saturday_

[Heroes](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXgkuM2NhYI) \- David Bowie, _“Heroes” (1977)_

> _And we kissed_
> 
> _As though nothing could fall_

[Into the Mystic](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=syIUmrSJWAU) \- Van Morrison, _Moondance (1970)_

> A subtle trill from above, then:
> 
> _We were born before the wind. Also younger than the sun…_
> 
> Martin slitted his eyes open; took in the fogged glass near the bed, the diffused dawn sparkling through it. It would be brisk outside today, autumn in full assault — a sharp contrast to the sweltering heat they’d left behind in Keene.

[Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jg4ekLG9Zo) \- David Bowie, _The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust_

> _Time takes a cigarette, puts it in your mouth_
> 
> _You pull on your finger, then another finger, then cigarette_

[The Bewlay Brothers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDRi30GNFMc) \- David Bowie, _Hunky Dory_

> _And how they bought their positions with saccharin and trust_
> 
> _And the world was asleep to our latent fuss_
> 
> _… … …_
> 
> _In our wings that bark_
> 
> _Flashing teeth of brass_
> 
> _Standing tall in the dark_

*[Exogenesis: Symphony pt.3 (Redemption)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRCzchqOSxk) \- Muse, _The Resistance (2009)_

> High Summer had turned the valley into a brilliant cascade of cobalt and malachite, streaked with swaths of indigo and gold. Their path curled an easy downward slope along the ridge, and as he observed the slow panorama the fingers of his fret hand started chording out a subconscious composition against his thigh: verse, chorus, verse, bridge. It felt instrumental — dulcimer, maybe steel guitar, backed with strings (George Martin, not Phil Spector), little bit of percussion-
> 
> “What’s that you’re humming?”
> 
> Martin glanced over. Caught her eye, and gave a small shrug. “Not sure yet.”

[Underneath the Bottle](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x663vWsCrp4) \- Lou Reed, _The Blue Mask (1981)_

> He returned to the house, eating the sandwich he’d been carrying down to her as he did. Passed the afternoon plunking around a couple new compositions, and trying to decide if Aunna was right about _The Blue Mask_ (in that “it’d be a really good album, if not for Lou Reed”).

*[The Flower of Magherally](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qg9lKYOIzRs) (Irish Traditional) - Eitre, _The Coming of Spring (2005)_

> It hit him then that although he was genuinely happy for Leo, and had only ever wished the best for him, he also felt a bit of envy - for his friend, for his friend’s wife, for whatever peace his sister had cultivated in Shadow - and it drew his wistful eye past Aunna’s illusion to where Lord Balfax swayed with his Lady in the moonlight.
> 
> … … …
> 
> He got to his feet, and crossed to where the newlyweds continued to weave in a slow circle to the dulcimer serenading them from the corner.

[Lay Down Sally](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9hQqP6RNnDE) \- Eric Clapton, _Slowhand (1977)_

> A subtle chirp from above, then:
> 
> A rolicking six-string.
> 
> A brushed drum-and-cymbal beat.
> 
> A tenor declaring _There is nothing that is wrong, wanting you to stay here with me…_
> 
> Aunna’s head wrenched away, crowing sudden laughter. Martin sighed, and pressed his forehead to the back she presented him with.

[Right Down the Line](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSfOB8ANdWU) \- Gerry Rafferty, _City to City (1978)_

> “Sim0ne,” she ventured after a settling moment. “Resume playback?”
> 
> A subtle chirp. A high-slide guitar over a heavy-walking bass. Another tenor, this one claiming _You know I need your love; you got that hold over me…_
> 
> Martin felt her smirk against his chest.
> 
> He chuckled in return, thankful that she probably wouldn’t figure out it was a curated playlist ( _Songs that Make Me Think of Her_ , because he was a closet sap apparently).

[Hey Nineteen](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvg5mbM6FGs) \- Steely Dan, _Gaucho (1980)_

> She made a small, satisfied sound. It was followed by an abrupt organ chord / drum beat; a drawn-out, wavering guitar note. Then a jazzy slide, a walking bass, and Martin paused in pulling his tails to let loose a laugh.
> 
> “Way to hang a bell on it, A,” he eventually managed to articulate.
> 
> … … …
> 
> She followed the question up by hooking a beckoning finger at him, mouthing along _So young and willing…_

[Precious](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivH-5et5qQ8) \- Pretenders, _Pretenders (1980)_

> “Sim0ne,” he spoke into the air.
> 
> From its place on the table behind him, the screen on his comm rippled a watery blue pattern, and the music muffled as the loft’s speakers let out a soft chirrup in acknowledgment. Martin’s eyes narrowed slightly when they met Aunna’s.
> 
> “Help a Fella Out, Willya?”
> 
> The song stopped. After a moment there came a quick, four-click of drumsticks; then a heavy kick bass / snare / guitar combo dropped in. Aunna’s sneer was full of approval as her head picked up the beat.

*[R U Mine](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQH8ZTgna3Q) \- Arctic Monkeys, _AM_

> (a high reverb guitar twanging discordantly over a heavy drum and bass; one of his newer pieces snuck into the mix)

[Solsbury Hill](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OO2PuGz-H8) \- Peter Gabriel, _Peter Gabriel 1: Car (1977)_

> _When illusion spin her net I'm never where I want to be_
> 
> _And liberty she pirouette when I think that I am free_

[New Year's Day](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdLuk2Agamk) \- U2, _War (1983)_

> “Where are you?”
> 
> … … …
> 
> “Keene,” she eventually replied. “I thought you were in Cali.”
> 
> “I was. Briefly.” Martin moved away, switched off the turntable, and settled the arm back into its cradle. He looked at the jacket of the album he'd rescued, tilted his head curiously at the black and white image of a boy with a bruised face staring angrily back at him. “You called me.”

[Invisible Sun](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VuDjJ9KIxM) \- The Police, _Ghost in the Machine (1981)_

[Can't Find My Way Home](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jlLBs6YawM) \- Blind Faith, _Blind Faith (1969)_

[No Quarter](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdqDmJbm2eY) \- Led Zeppelin, _Houses of the Holy (1973)_

> She made a noncommittal sound. He set the sleeve on top of the other recently played titles - _Ghost in the Machine, Blind Faith, Houses of the Holy_ \- before leaving the turntable, and hooking a chair around to sit in front of her.

[Don’t Think Twice It’s All Right](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-Y3KfJs6T0) \- Bob Dylan, _The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan_

> _We never did too much talkin' anyway_
> 
> _But don't think twice, it's all right_

[A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6QnaCGJUdA) \- Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians, _Born on the Fourth of July_ _(1989)_

> _I've been ten thousand miles in the mouth of a graveyard_
> 
> _And it's a hard, and it's a hard, it's a hard, and it's a hard_
> 
> _It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall_

*[Run to the Water](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TB1zPYKQCCY) \- Live, _The Distance to Here (1999)_

> _A million mile fall from grace_
> 
> _Thank God we missed the ground_

[Sunday Bloody Sunday](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3bhT7Ke87g) \- U2, _War_

> He saw Martin chew his lips before nodding, let the silence play out while the man filled his glass a third time, and got to his feet. He crossed to pull the cover from a standing cabinet, opened it to reveal a stack of stereo equipment, flipped a couple of switches and dropped the needle on whatever had last been played — a marching drum beat, joined by a high guitar, then:
> 
> _I can’t believe the news today. I can’t close my eyes and make it go away-_
> 
> Martin, who had been turning, halted abruptly and visibly paled; went back and lifted the arm; 

[Fire and Rain](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbD7lfrsY2s) \- James Taylor, _Sweet Baby James (1971)_

> exchanged the album for something with a soothing strum and a melodic male voice, as comforting as it was melancholy. He then returned to his space on the sofa, and slumped into it, head resting over the top with his eyes closed.

[The Man Who Sold the World](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fregObNcHC8) \- Nirvana, _Unplugged (1994)_

> “Launch playlist ‘This Is My Mood Now’.”
> 
> The tiny neural interface behind his left ear gave a small trill as it processed his request, and Martin set about cleaning up the spoiled meal. Around him a raspy male crooned: _We passed upon the stair, spoke of was and when…_
> 
> And it was Cobain’s voice from the speakers, but also Bowie’s voice in his memory, and Aunna’s voice in his ear-
> 
> _“Although I wasn’t there, he said I was his friend…”_

[Fake Plastic Trees](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5h0qHwNrHk) \- Radiohead, _The Bends (1995)_

> “Skip track,” he bit out.
> 
> _Her green plastic watering can for her fake Chinese rubber plant…_
> 
> He pulled the tie from his hair, scrubbed his fingers through it roughly, then tucked it behind his ears. He drew hard on the cigarette, and eyed the empty green bottle.

[Lily, Rosemary, and the Jack of Hearts](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agdoeRpTfHg) \- Bob Dylan, _Blood on the Tracks_

> Tristan grinned down at the album, then looked around the room contemplatively, tapping fingertips against the sleeve before setting it on the table. “I think there’s a gramophone in storage downstairs,” he said, standing. “Just a tick.”
> 
> And then he was hefting an honest-to-god gramophone up the stairs, and setting it up on an end table near the kitchen, and they were listening to ‘Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts’ while making lunch and-
> 
> “Sometimes, I miss her so much it guts me.”

[Shelter from the Storm](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gsDBuHwqbM) \- Bob Dylan, _Blood on the Tracks_

> He’d always found it easier to talk when his hands were busy, which Tristan must’ve picked up on somehow, because as soon as the veg were finished his host traded him places, and passed the wooden spoon over to keep stirring.
> 
> _T’was in another lifetime, one of toil and blood…_
> 
> “We were taking a break when it happened,” Martin finally began. “She found out about Corwin trying to kill Eric, and said she had to go make peace with him or risk exile.”

[Carolina In My Mind](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oV_MCQm8iFM) \- James Taylor, _James Taylor (1968)_

> They took their meal out to the ‘balcony’ (Tristan hesitated to use the term, since it was barely wide enough for two bistro chairs, and he had to climb through a window to access it), and enjoyed what had turned out to be a perfect spring day in companionable ease. Tristan answered Martin’s questions about growing up between Malwain and Amber, and listened to a few anecdotes about Rebman childhood in return. A man named Taylor sang about going to Carolina from the gramophone, the guitar-and-vocal vaguely familiar.

[Movin’ Out (Anthony’s Song)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJtL8vWNZ4o) \- Billy Joel, _The Stranger (1977)_

> Tristan’s attention shifted back into the apartment with an affirmative noise, and he disappeared. After a moment, Martin caught a very familiar rustling sound, then music: simultaneous piano / guitar / drum-
> 
> _Anthony works in the grocery store, savin’ his pennies for someday…_
> 
> When Tristan returned a full song later, stooping through the window to join him, he passed Martin a steaming mug and asked, “So what did she hate about this one?”
> 
> “Nothing,” Martin shrugged, sipping. “We loved this album. Granted, hers was a grudging, _guilty_ love, but still."
> 
> It had a lot of fond memories as a result. Some he could share. Others he would never.

[Hotel California](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=811QZGDysx0) \- Eagles, _Hotel California (1976)_

[Spirits in the Material World](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHOevX4DlGk) \- The Police, _Ghost in the Machine_

> Over the past few days they’d listened to _Hotel California_ (which Tristan had played several times since), and _Ghost in the Machine_ (which he was still on the fence about), and while he looked to be enjoying _The Stranger_ so far, Martin _had_ been subconsciously cataloguing his reactions.

[Where the Streets Have No Name](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfunypXsBO4) \- U2, _The Joshua Tree (1987)_

> “Launch playlist ‘This Is My Mood Now’.”
> 
> Chirrup, followed by a crescendoing organ, a steady high guitar layering over, then a driving bass and drum-
> 
> Martin laughed aloud. _Well played, sim0ne,_ he thought with a broadening grin, stepping forward when the doors parted. _Advantage, you._
> 
> _I want to run,_ the tenor replied. _I want to hide. I wanna tear down the walls that hold me inside…_

*[The Cuckoo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPYdNCcTyNs) \- Tim Eriksen and Riley Baugus, _Cold Mountain (2003)_

[Give Up the Funk (Tear the Roof Off the Sucker)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJvjWh2Vhu4) \- Parliament-Funkadelic, _Mothership Connection (1975)_

> Martin paused at the entryway to take in the lounge's aesthetic: Exposed brick and polished oak beams, floorspace dotted with semi-circle sofas and benches for group socializing, tall tables and stools in little recesses along the walls for more intimate conversation. He glanced at the trio occupying the raised platform left of the door - hand organ, banjo, fiddle - and stopped sim0ne's playback with a subtle brush of a finger when the juxtaposition of rapid bluegrass picking and P-Funk wanting to turn this mother out became jarring.

[Sweet Baby James](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2x0fPgAj_Y) \- James Taylor, _Sweet Baby James_

> For several moments the only noise in the apartment was cricket song. Then it was water into a kettle, and the clatter of the stovetop, and Martin had put James Taylor on the gramophone which yes, that was good. Leo would appreciate the soothing camouflage.
> 
> Tristan leaned forward, reached over, and placed a hand on Leo’s shoulder.
> 
> The touch was a crack in the dam. Leo’s back spasmed, and he was suddenly clenching his fingers across the nape of his neck; had crowded his elbows around his head and folded into himself, going as small as he could make his six-foot frame achieve.

[Solsbury Hill](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eoTAHU6lXM) \- Ingram Hill, _Why the Wait (2006)_

> _And liberty she pirouette when I think that I am free_
> 
> _Watched by empty silhouettes who close their eyes but still can see_

[Simple Twist of Fate](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGnhyoP_DSc) \- Bob Dylan, _Blood on the Tracks_

> _He felt the heat of the night hit him like a freight train_
> 
> _Moving with a simple twist of fate_

[Out of the Woods](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-e0VkWRYaMI) \- Nickel Creek, _Nickel Creek (2000)_

> “I remember you,” he said. She laughed lowly, barely more than a breath.
> 
> “I thought we’d established that already,” she replied, tucking an errant curl behind her ear.
> 
> “I remember you at The Hill,” he clarified. “The night before we deployed. You sang a duet with a man playing dobro that I heard in my head for months, after.”
> 
> Her face twisted ruefully. “I’m sorry?” she offered.
> 
> He shook his head. “Don’t be. It was a nice memory to fall asleep to, while it lasted.”

[Health to the Company](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7PVJuo4yw4) (Irish Traditional) - Minstrels of Mayhem, _My Dear Mother’s Pub (1994)_

> The fiddle-and-mandolin duo on stage were closing out the night with a subdued but hauntingly familiar rendition of ‘Health to the Company’. It was a small tug at his sentimentality, the first song he’d ever heard her sing, and he was tipped into the nostalgia of it. The quick glance she cast him said she remembered, too.
> 
> “Seems fitting, doesn’t it,” he commented, offhandedly.
> 
> “In the theatre, we call it ‘bookending a narrative’,” she replied. Then laughed a little in adding, “But that makes this whole thing sound orchestrated, rather than a simple twist of fate.”

[Second Hand News](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLfcwDZ5GzQ) \- Fleetwood Mac, _Rumours (1977)_

> There was the shush of an album being unsleeved, followed by the click-and-ratchet sound of the turntable being set into motion-
> 
> -a cantering guitar, then bass and drum and a tenor declaring _I know there’s nothing to say. Someone has taken my place-_
> 
> Cassidy popped into view with wide, gleeful eyes, and Tristan thought if he could see that every day for the rest of his life, he’d live and die a fortunate man.

[Dreams](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5ugW4-BstE) \- Fleetwood Mac, _Rumours_

> He laughed, but otherwise conversation suspended while he finished slicing and arranged cutlets on plates, laying the last pieces out just as Stevie began crooning about thunder. He could see the movement of Cassidy’s finger tapping a beat against the counter in his periphery, and when he let his focus drift up to her face (eyes closed, beatific), the image of her sitting there - chin cupped in an upturned palm, fingers curled around her smile, the room behind her awash in golden sunset - warmed a numbness behind his ribs he hadn’t noticed before.
> 
> She looked perfect in his space, and he was thoroughly smitten.

[Tangled Up in Blue](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKcNyMBw818) \- Bob Dylan, _Blood on the Tracks_

> They traded wine for jasmine tea, dinner for honey cakes, and _Rumours_ for _Blood on the Tracks_ -
> 
> (because she’d insisted he play one of his favourites next, then caught him out when he hesitated and almost put on _Hotel California_ instead, calling “Don’t curate, Tristan! I want your gut reaction!” and so he was wholly delighted when she declared Dylan’s particular voice ‘an instrument all its own’ with guileless appreciation, then got up to turn the album to side b)

[One of These Nights](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESc2Tq2HzhQ) \- Eagles, _One of These Nights (1975)_

> Tristan glanced askance from the grill; watched as Cassidy folded herself into her seat on the arched patio sofa, tucking her bare feet up beside her and cradling her drink near her hip as she regarded the man seated further down the curve. From the front room, Don Henley told them he’d been searchin’ for the daughter of the devil himself, and Tristan could see one of Cassidy’s fingers tapping a rhythm against her glass; the subtle nod of her head on the backbeat.

[(Just Like) Starting Over](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWG9KAgD6UA) \- John Lennon and Yoko Ono, _Double Fantasy (1980)_

> His tone was both kind and amused, which made Tristan smile at the steaks he was tending. “Y’know, I had a feeling we were gonna get on when T told me he’d finally given _Double Fantasy_ another listen-”
> 
> Tristan sucked his teeth in reflex, and pulled a face. “I’m still firmly on the fence about that one,” he said. “John’s stuff is beautiful and honest, but Yoko’s-”
> 
> Martin let loose a peal of laughter that startled birds from the nearby oaks; drew Tristan’s full attention.
> 
> “Jesus it _kills_ me when you directly oppose her on shit like that,” he practically howled.

[You Can Close Your Eyes](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjksn8mEt8M) \- James Taylor, _Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon_

> “There was a song…” She hummed a few bars of _You Can Close Your Eyes_ , and when he nodded that he knew it, she continued, “He got this look on his face - far away and melancholy, but still happy somehow? - and then he told a story about the two of them going to see the artist at a club called The Troubadour, and how she’d called it sentimental drivel but at least she could understand what he was saying, which I think I correctly took for a jab at Dylan-”

[Tiny Dancer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqlGlaNlcWE) \- Elton John, _Madman Across the Water (1971)_

> There was an arrow leading to the edge of the page. It had been pointing to a blue sleeve covered with blocky, darker blue-and-white lettering: _Madman Across the Water Elton John_.
> 
> Cassidy lifted the album. Turned it over pensively.
> 
> “One evening together, and he thinks I’ll like _this_ one?” She cast Tristan a sideways glance full of sly skepticism.
> 
> … … …
> 
> She crossed to the music cabinet and slid the album from its sleeve; settled it carefully on the turntable, cranked the machine, and lowered the needle. Turned back to the sofa as the piano began-
> 
> -and froze; the cessation of her movements so abrupt, it arrested his attention.

*[I Will](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gxAHjc2nrg) \- Alison Krauss, _Now That I've Found You (1995)_

> They swayed a two-step for the quintet in the bandstand as night fell, and hummed along to the familiar ballad as they did; coiled up with her temple to his cheek, in full view of the terraces from Butoi-Botal.


	3. AWAMP: A Pronunciation Guide

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Because readers might like to know things like, IDK, how to pronounce names..? /facepalm
> 
> If you have questions about others that I may have missed (and I know I probably did), feel free to leave a comment and I'll add the answer. /g

**Characters**

  * Kaitlyn Ariaunna (KATE-lin Arr-ee-AW-naa) - usually just Aunna
  * Sagr (saa-GEAR)



**Items**

  * Aardbrekker (ARRD-breh-ker)
  * Feüermede (FOY-er-meed)
  * sim0ne (sim ONE, spoken as a single word)



**Places in Amber / Arden**

  * The Crixa (CRICK-saa) - a junction point of Paths to the Golden Circle, located in Arden Forest 



**Places in Deig'a** (DYEG-ah)

  * Holdfény Collective (hold-FEH-nee) - a society of refugee Weir, displaced from Weirholden by the Gheneshan War (extinct)
  * Ma'k Deig (maak DYEG) - the largest of the eastern deserts, inhabited by the Tribes
  * Zlaturoman (zla-TOO-ro-Maan) - sometimes just 'Turoman, a region similar to the Nile Delta



**Places in Malwain** (MAL-wain)

  * Butoi-Botal (BOO-toy-bo-TAHL) - popular lounge in Lo Áilt
  * Cathair du Varos (ka-THAYR du VAH-rohs) - Malwain's Capitol City, colloquially "CdV"
  * Helbour Caverns (HEL-bor) - a village in the Eminence Ridge popular with spelunkers / hikers, also home of the Helbour Mazery
  * Lo Áilt (low AHLT) - a village in the Buckden, location of the Willow Trace Distillery
  * Picstùc Point (PIC-stook) - a ski / climbing resort in the Eminence Ridge
  * Râuabhainn River (RAAU-ab-Hain) - the oxbowed eastern river in CdV
  * Rjimswood (RIMS-wood) - a village in the Eminence Ridge, junction point for travel to several tourist destinations
  * Secară (seh-CAR-ah) - a lounge in CdV, located in the area known as Distiller's Row
  * Stejari Provence (steh-JHAAR-ee) - a timber region in the North Buckden
  * Suma River (SUU-mah) - Malwain's largest south-flowing river, running from Stejari to Bull's Bay
  * Uisgapă Falls (wees-GA-pa) - a rafting / canoeing resort in the Eminence Ridge
  * Walebonn River (WAIL-bawn) - the large south-east flowing river in CdV, mostly commercial use
  * Zecemíle Springs (ZEH-ch-meel) - a popular spa resort in the Eminence Ridge



**Places in Murn**

  * Følswyn (FOALS-win)
  * Portwinstäad (PORT-win-Stahd) - Murn's major southern port, home to the Portrinstäad Pikes PSL (Premier Scramble League)



**Places in Texorami** (Tex-oh-RAH-me)

  * Port Laskill (LAS-kil)



**Words / Phrases**

  * Deigan 
    * háu khola (how kho-LAAH) - _meaning unknown_
    * mushtae (moosh-TAY) - _meaning unknown_
    * Sodelavec (so-DEL-Ah-veck) - _meaning unknown_
    * uchmoq (ooch-MAWK) - 'fly'
  * Malwainese  

    * "Deschis mereu doras." (DEH-she MEH-ru DOR-az) - "Door's always open."
    * fiuàrd (Fee-oo-AHRD) - 'guardson'
    * mi milis (me me-LEES) - 'my sweet'
    * pasăre (pah-SAAR-ay) - 'bird'
    * slàintate (SLAHN-ch-tay) - 'your good health' 
      * response: ata’leatsa (Ah-ta lee-AHT-sa) - 'and yours'
    * viaţă beatha (vee-AHT-sa bee-AAH-tha) - literally 'life life', but in the manner of 'shit happens' 
      * response: beatha u'ară (bee-AHH-tha ooh-ARR-ah) - 'life moves' or 'all the time'




	4. On Becoming a Rowan Vert

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Although the benchmarks and expectations have evolved since the course's inception, Tristan and Leo (both 33 at the time) went through a version of this training as 2/178 applicants for the inaugural run.
> 
> By 'final exam', they were 2/17 facing an objective designed by Julian.
> 
> _It. **Was. Hell.**_

Founded by Colonel Isaiah Rowan [HMC, PL-AR, Ret.] shortly after the Gheneshan War, ‘Volunteer Extensive Reconnaissance Training’ is a seven week elective course for which all enlisted personnel (native to the Golden Circle, ranked Sergeant or above, from any branch of His Majesty’s Army) are welcome to apply.

The first three weeks are run by one of the unit’s Senior NCOs*, with a pair of Junior NCO assistants. For two weeks they are instructed on various topics, both classroom and field; and in the final week, they undergo a series of aptitude assessments and written exams.

Candidates deemed ‘Fit to Continue [FTC]’ following a full medical workup** are granted a two-day furlough, and allowed to progress; those not FTC are given a two-week leave, and provided options for future career paths within their home units (should they choose to remain in the service).

The next twelve days are typically run by the unit’s XO, and often focus on covert ops - active surveillance, infiltration / extraction, search-and-seizure, &c - as well as advanced field tactics. Drills often focus on working together to achieve a goal, however this could mean the Candidates problem-solving as a single body ('this building is under siege, how do we fix that with minimal collateral damage / loss-of-life'), or being split into teams with opposing goals ('protect this until' vs. 'retrieve that before').

Again, all FTC Candidates are granted two days furlough (nFTC are given leave, &c) before resuming.

The remaining five days of the course are run by the unit’s FC, and equate to a final exam. Candidates are taken to a remote location, provided with minimum gear for survival, and tasked with an objective they’re expected to achieve before the end of the course’s timeframe. Frequently this operation involves trekking through the wilderness to a remote location, infiltrating a bunker guarded by veteran Vert, and either capturing the leader for interrogation by Central Command, or retrieving one of their own from captivity.

It is a pass / fail scenario, although 'fail' does not mean immediate expulsion from the program. Following a cursory check by MedCorps, all remaining Candidates are given a five day leave to recover before undergoing a final extensive physical exam / psychological evaluation / performance review.

Those still wishing to take on the responsibility are formally introduced to the rest of the field unit with a graduation / induction ceremony, and awarded their chevrons as a member of the Rowan Vert.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * - after Tristan assumed Rowan Vert Field Command [RV-FC], this was most often Avery (who'd earned his chevrons five years after T and Leo).
> 
> ** - these tests became both physical _and_ psychological when T assumed command following Col. Rowan's retirement.
> 
> RVFC  
> Yrs. 00-12 -- Col. Rowan  
> Yrs. 12-34 -- Maj. / Lt. Col. Rozenberg  
> Yrs. 34-39 -- Maj. / Lt. Col. Westwood  
> Yrs. 39-45 -- Maj. Lewison  
> Yrs. 45-49 -- Lt. Col. Westwood  
> Yrs. 49-PD -- Lt. Col. Lewison

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos are love :) Comments are moderated (for spam, not content), but always welcome. :)


End file.
